Metro Phoenix Transit/Transportation Developments

[N830MH]

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/...rail/93420910/

More news about light-rail for West Phoenix.

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by N830MH

WE haven't hear any news about high-speed trains from Phoenix to Las Vegas yet? Haven't they already got an approved yet? What are waiting for?!?

Between Phoenix and Vegas? I was not aware of any such fantasies.

The only regional rail with any possibility of ever happening within the next few decades is the Phx-Tucson inter-city rail.

Anything high speed you'll have to wait for Elon's Pneumatic tubes https://hyperloop-one.com/

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by N830MH

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/...rail/93420910/

More news about light-rail for West Phoenix.

I was in Glendale yesterday for a meeting. Traveling through that city's small downtown on the way to Glendale Community College, I couldn't help but be reminded of how silly Glendale's thinking about light rail is. The initial proposal to build track through the Alhambra neighborhood of Phoenix and then to downtown Glendale makes sense, but the city council then wants two details that may undermine light rail:

First, it wants the track to travel down Glenn Drive (a local street) rather than Glendale Avenue (an arterial) within Downtown. Mesa considered doing something similar but wisely decided to keep light rail in a high-visibility location right on Main Street.

Second, it wants light rail to extend west of 59th Avenue so there is a future option to expand to Westgate. Right after the excitement of the NCAA Final Four, that sounds great. Nevertheless, events like that occur infrequently and may be less common once new mega-stadiums in Las Vegas and Los Angeles start competing for the same events. Most of the time, the trains will be running to a destination that is always a team relocation or players strike away from irrelevance. Running north on 59th Ave to destinations like Glendale Community College, which has 20,000 students, would make a lot more sense.

Of course, the current federal budget proposal, which is designed to eventually reduce federal transit funding to zero, might eliminate or delay this project anyway.

[exit2lef]

Valley Metro is asking for public input on a new method of naming light rail and other high-capacity transit lines as the system grows:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/vmr-naming

One comment I added to my response: Simplifying station names is as important as naming future routes. I like that the illustration of the proposed system uses shorter, more intuitive station names in some cases. I hope this will be developed further.

[Jjs5056]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

Valley Metro is asking for public input on a new method of naming light rail and other high-capacity transit lines as the system grows:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/vmr-naming

One comment I added to my response: Simplifying station names is as important as naming future routes. I like that the illustration of the proposed system uses shorter, more intuitive station names in some cases. I hope this will be developed further.

What strikes me is 1) how the short-spaced stops in places like downtown Mesa make the system totally useless as high-capacity transit, and 2) how obvious it should be that other modes have been tossed out hastily when only the crappy streetcar in Tempe is listed as an option.

The redevelopment spurred makes it hard to criticize, but the main line should have terminated at Rural/8th and the highest LRT route priorities right now should be South Central and Biltmore, with modes explored for the Capitol, Apache/Main, Fairgrounds, and W/NW. The heavy cost means that we will likely never see areas like Grand, Union Station, and the Fairgrounds connected since they are so close to lines yet in reality too far to be viable. A true BRT system to the Capitol would have more than sufficed and been a good test for future use on Thomas, etc.

Streetcar from Roosevelt/3rd Ave to the Fairgrounds via one-way loop around Van Buren/3rd Ave > Jackson/7th Ave and onto Grand to 15th Ave split into two phases would make major connections between arts districts, destinations, and other transit modes. A future line down McDowell to 12th Street and through Garfield would be the last boost for that 'hood to transition. And, incorporating Jackson leaves open the possibility of one day restoring Commuter Rail which is what should ultimately be serving these far-out downtowns. A Lincoln/Central station will have little impact on the WD, and is way too far from Union Station to make any conversation realistic.

As is, I wish they would at least consider a subground station at Central/Jackson connecting to a transit center on the large empty lot at ground level. A people-mover could easily connect that to Union Station if needed while also providing a true WD station. And, beyond South Central and Capitol, I wish the $ would go into peak-hour express rides and overpasses at the most impacted intersections.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by Jjs5056

What strikes me is 1) how the short-spaced stops in places like downtown Mesa make the system totally useless as high-capacity transit, and 2) how obvious it should be that other modes have been tossed out hastily when only the crappy streetcar in Tempe is listed as an option.

The spacing in Downtown Mesa is a station every half mile: Country Club - Center - Mesa Drive. That's actually fewer stations per mile than in Downtown Phoenix or Downtown Tempe, where stations are only two blocks apart. Don't blame Mesa for any flaws you perceive in the current line.

In any case, this survey is really more about naming conventions than the exact plan for future expansion. What specific routes might be added later in terms of light rail, streetcar, or BRT is a separate matter subject to planning decisions and funding availability.

[azliam]

There is another article on PHX Business Journal addressing this; however, it is behind a paywall.

This week, the City Council will vote on the airport’s three-year proposal to increase international marketing funds, allow fee waivers and institute a new credit for airlines that start service to unserved or underserved markets.

Target cities include Montreal; Monterrey, Mexico; Tokyo; Beijing; Shanghai; Frankfurt, Germany; Paris; Rome; and Sao Paolo, Brazil.

http://kjzz.org/content/461693/phoen...tional-flights

[PHXFlyer11]

Originally Posted by azliam

There is another article on PHX Business Journal addressing this; however, it is behind a paywall.





http://kjzz.org/content/461693/phoen...tional-flights

Of these, only Montreal, Monterrey, Germany, and Tokyo are realistic possibilities in the next several years.

[N830MH]

Originally Posted by PHXFlyer11

Of these, only Montreal, Monterrey, Germany, and Tokyo are realistic possibilities in the next several years.

And also Basel, Switzerland, as well. It will be possible for this? Will they ever consider it? It will be much easier for me to fly nonstop PHX-BSL-PHX instead of one-stop.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by N830MH

And also Basel, Switzerland, as well. It will be possible for this? Will they ever consider it? It will be much easier for me to fly nonstop PHX-BSL-PHX instead of one-stop.

I think any nonstop service to Switzerland is a long-shot, but if it were to happen, it would almost certainly be to Zurich, Switzerland's largest city.

[PHXFlyer11]

Originally Posted by N830MH

And also Basel, Switzerland, as well. It will be possible for this? Will they ever consider it? It will be much easier for me to fly nonstop PHX-BSL-PHX instead of one-stop.

I assume this is a joke. There might be one person every week that travels from PHX to BSL.

[Buckeye Native 001]

C'mon, the Phoenix metro is home to at least 4.5 million people. There's got to be at least five people making that trip every week...

[N830MH]

We got a news for you! Phoenix city council has been approved for South Central extension.

http://ktar.com/story/1535234/phoeni...or-light-rail/

It's official!!!

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by N830MH

We got a news for you! Phoenix city council has been approved for South Central extension.

http://ktar.com/story/1535234/phoeni...or-light-rail/

It's official!!!

...but still contingent upon federal funds, which are in jeopardy due to the White House budget proposal. If federal money for public transit goes away or is significantly curtailed, we may still see some light rail expansion, but there will be some difficult decisions to make about which projects are the highest priorities for limited local funds. I'd add assign the highest priority to South Central and to extending the current line to MetroCenter. I wouldn't mind seeing the Capitol / I-10 West line delayed because I think the decision to run it down the I-10 median is questionable. Likewise, I wouldn't shed tears over the Tempe Streetcar because streetcars running in mixed traffic have uneven results. Some, like the one in Tucson, make sense, but the streetcars in Atlanta and Washington DC seem like weak attempts at economic development rather than useful adjuncts to existing heavy rail transit in those cities.

[CrestedSaguaro]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

...but still contingent upon federal funds, which are in jeopardy due to the White House budget proposal. If federal money for public transit goes away or is significantly curtailed, we may still see some light rail expansion, but there will be some difficult decisions to make about which projects are the highest priorities for limited local funds. I'd add assign the highest priority to South Central and to extending the current line to MetroCenter. I wouldn't mind seeing the Capitol / I-10 West line delayed because I think the decision to run it down the I-10 median is questionable. Likewise, I wouldn't shed tears over the Tempe Streetcar because streetcars running in mixed traffic have uneven results. Some, like the one in Tucson, make sense, but the streetcars in Atlanta and Washington DC seem like weak attempts at economic development rather than useful adjuncts to existing heavy rail transit in those cities.

I was under the assumption that we voted for a tax to increase light rail development? How much is contingent upon Federal funds?

I also agree that the line running down the I-10 median is completely senseless. The only thing I can fathom why the city wants to do this is strictly for visibility along a major interstate, "Hey, look at us! We have light rail!".

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by RonnieFoos

I was under the assumption that we voted for a tax to increase light rail development? How much is contingent upon Federal funds?

Federal funds are vital for capital projects, and planning for these new light rail lines assumes federal money as a supplement to Prop 104 / Transportation 2050. This is common practice is almost all cities around the country. Even projects like the Second Avenue Subway in NYC are built with federal assistance.

"Funding for Transportation 2050 is being generated by the voter-approved sales tax associated with Proposition 104, which became effective Jan. 1, 2016. This sales tax dedicates 7/10ths of a cent or 70 cents on a $100 purchase to fund the implementation of the Transportation 2050 plan. Over the life of the plan the funds are estimated to generate about $16.7 billion, or almost half of the plan’s overall cost. An additional $14.8 billion is projected to be generated from federal and county funds, passenger fares and other sources."

https://www.phoenix.gov/publictransi...on%202050.aspx

[muertecaza]

Originally Posted by RonnieFoos

I was under the assumption that we voted for a tax to increase light rail development? How much is contingent upon Federal funds?

I also agree that the line running down the I-10 median is completely senseless. The only thing I can fathom why the city wants to do this is strictly for visibility along a major interstate, "Hey, look at us! We have light rail!".

The overall Transportation 2050 plan allocates 51% of its budget to increased bus service, 35% to light rail, and 14% to street improvements.

https://www.phoenix.gov/T2050/Funding

The plan is about half funded with Prop 104 funds (the increased sales tax), and the rest is projected to be funded with mostly federal funds. So, as exit2lef said, any change in that budget--such as a drop in sales tax revenue due to another recession, or a reduction in the availability of federal funds--will result in having to prioritize projects.

[CrestedSaguaro]

Originally Posted by muertecaza

The overall Transportation 2050 plan allocates 51% of its budget to increased bus service, 35% to light rail, and 14% to street improvements.

https://www.phoenix.gov/T2050/Funding

The plan is about half funded with Prop 104 funds (the increased sales tax), and the rest is projected to be funded with mostly federal funds. So, as exit2lef said, any change in that budget--such as a drop in sales tax revenue due to another recession, or a reduction in the availability of federal funds--will result in having to prioritize projects.

Ahh. Yes, I guess the funds wouldn't add up with just tax . I don't follow transportation projects to closely. Thanks for clarifying!

[N830MH]

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/...oon/100695810/

Valley Metro and Tempe officials announced the construction schedule Wednesday. The plan is to do the work during the summer months when tourism is lighter and fewer college students are in town.

At last! Tempe Streetcar is about to starts construction soon. Is scheduled to open in year of 2020.

[exit2lef]

"Smith said proposed rollbacks of the Federal Transit Authority Capital Investment Program and other federal grants in the Trump budget blueprint could jeopardize expansions on the outer reaches of the light rail system and the construction of a streetcar system in Tempe."

http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/n...ight-rail.html